Just How Liberal Is John Kerry? According to Liberal Newspapers, Kerry is VERY liberal!

How liberal is John Kerry? According to several liberal newspapers and magazines… VERY liberal!

Of the Democrats, marginally the best known in Massachusetts is Mr Kerry. He is a down-the-line liberal who won election as lieutenant-governor by emphasising his anti-war credentials. Having been decorated for bravery as a naval commander during the Vietnam war, he came home to testify before congress that the war was wrong. He founded a nationwide protest movement of Vietnam ex-servicemen. Like Mr Markey and Mr Shannon, he favours a nuclear freeze and has been active in promoting a policy to control acid rain.

Other Democratic candidates are using the court issue, Professor Dershowitz noted, including Lt. Gov. John Kerry in Massachusetts. Mr. Kerry has been running for the U.S. Senate on a platform stating he'll vote against Reagan nominees to the court, he said.

Nuclear freeze activists, deadlocked in their effort to endorse a single candidate for the United States Senate from Massachusetts, broke the stalemate by endorsing two men.

Lieut. Gov. John Kerry and Representative James Shannon, both Democrats, joined their hands in a sign of mutual victory Saturday after about 500 representatives of groups advocating a nuclear freeze throughout the state awarded the the unusual dual endorsement to the only candidates who vowed to work for all- out nuclear disarmament.

In the Democrats' hard-fought senate primary, there was no ideological divide between the winner, Mr Kerry, and Mr James Shannon, who has been named the second most liberal member of congress by both Mr Ralph Nader and the National Journal. Together these liberal rivals outpolled two conservative also-rans by four to one. Mr Kerry had the advantage of being better known, two years after his campaign for lieutenant-governor. He had also made a name for himself as a war hero, the founder of Vietnam Veterans against the War, and as a crusader against acid rain.

The Vietnam War has been over for 10 years, but not here. It has blazed up as an issue in the slam-bang Senate fight between conservative Republican Ray Shamie and John Kerry, a much-decorated combat veteran who came home to lead the Vietnam Veterans against the War in the most powerful and moving protest of the time.

Gen. George S. Patton III, the flamboyant field commander who once said he "loved to see the arms and legs flying" in battle, came to Boston to blast Kerry for "probably" causing "some of my guys to get killed" by his dissidence. "There's no soap ever been invented that can wash that blood off his hands."

To a great extent, the contest between Kerry, 40, the liberal Democratic lieutenant governor, and Shamie, 63, a political novice who defeated Elliot L. Richardson in the GOP primary, is tied to the battle between President Reagan and Democratic presidential nominee Walter F. Mondale in this state.

Kerry has pledged not to vote to raise taxes but instead to cut expensive weapons programs such as the MX missile and B1 bomber and to slash agricultural subsidies.

The campaign has crystallised into two arguments, of which the first is over who should get the credit for the continuing Massachusetts boom (unemployment has been around 4% for almost a year, the best performance in the industrial states). Mr Kerry thinks this is the happy result of public-private partnerships in education and development, including the low-interest state bonds for industrial expansion which Mr Shamie made use of for his own factory. Mr Shamie, a supply-sider who attributes the recovery mainly to the Reagan tax cuts, also believes that Massachusetts prospers because of the proposition 2 1/2 tax revolt of 1980, a version of California's proposition 13 which cut property taxes; Mr Kerry criticised the measure from the sidelines at the time as an "impulsive overreaction". The Democratic candidate, who does not want government any smaller although he is not a great one for raising taxes, reminded Mr Shamie the other day in a typically literate bit of mischief of a line from Longfellow: "And so we plough along, said the fly to the ox".

In an acrimonious fight for the Senate, Raymond Shamie, a conservative millionaire businessman who has wrapped himself in the mantle of President Reagan's policies and popularity, appears close to overtaking Lieut. Gov. John F. Kerry, a liberal Democrat.

The general election campaign has been bitter, with Mr. Shamie repeatedly accusing Mr. Kerry of lying and Mr. Kerry attacking Mr. Shamie for being vague and not answering questions in debates. Mr. Shamie has also asserted repeatedly that Mr. Kerry would vote to raise taxes, an assertion Mr. Kerry has denied.

http://acuratings.com/acu.cgi?ACT=1&USER_ID=2826&YEAR=2003

Senator John Kerry (D)
Massachusetts
Democrat, Years of Service: 19
ACU Ratings for Senator Kerry:
Year 2003 13
Year 2002 20
Lifetime 5

2003 Congressional Vote Breakdown:

Judicial Nominations. Estrada Nomination (Roll Call 40)
2003-03-06
Throughout the 2003 session, Senate Democrats filibustered numerous presidential nominations to the U.S. Courts of Appeal, essentially establishing a requirement that any nominee be approved by a supermajority of 60 votes in the 100 vote Senate, rather than the simple majority required by the Constitution. This particular vote was on the nomination of Miguel Estrada, but similar votes were held on the nominations of Priscilla Owen, William Pryor, Charles Pickering, and Janice Brown. The results were the same in every case: a majority voted to move the nominations to final passage, but the supermajority of 60 votes was not attained. In this case, the vote was 55-44, on 6 March 2003. ACU supported this nomination and believes that the filibuster of judicial nominations compromises the Senate’s duty to "advise and consent."
ACU supported this bill.
This bill was: defeated
The vote was: 55-44

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Abortion Decision Affirmed. S. 3 (Roll Call 48)
2003-03-12
This resolution affirmed that the Supreme Court’s 1973 decision legalizing abortion was correct. ACU believes the original decision in Roe v. Wade was wrongly decided. ACU opposed this resolution. It passed 52-46 on 12 March 2003
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: passed
The vote was: 52-46

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

“Death Tax” Repeal. S. Con. Res. 23 (Roll Call 62)
2003-03-20
This amendment to the Budget Resolution would have accelerated the repeal of the Estate Tax from 2010 to 2009. ACU supported the amendment. It passed 51-48 on 20 March 2003.
ACU supported this bill.
This bill was: passed
The vote was: 51-48

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Tax Cut Reduction. S. Con. Res. 23 (Roll Call 95)
2003-03-25
This substitute to the president’s budget would have substantially reduced the Bush tax cuts and shifted spending priorities to more liberal social programs. ACU opposed the substitute. It failed by a vote of 42-57 on 25 March 2003.
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: defeated
The vote was: 42-57

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Budget Resolution. S. Con. Res. 23 (Roll Call 134)
2003-04-11
The Senate adopted final spending and revenue targets for fiscal year 2004. This budget contained a total of $550 billion in tax cuts over a ten-year period. ACU supported this budget as the best possible under the circumstances. It was adopted 50-50, with the vice-president casting the tie-breaking vote on 11 April 2003.
ACU supported this bill.
This bill was: passed
The vote was: 50-50

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Marriage Penalty. S. 1054 (Roll Call 155)
2003-05-15
This measure was a trade-off between general tax reductions and an accelerated phase-out of the Marriage Penalty. ACU rejected such a trade-off and opposed the amendment. It failed by a vote of 49-51 on 15 May 2003.
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: defeated
The vote was: 49-51

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Taxes on Investment. S. 1054 (Roll Call 171)
2003-05-15
This amendment would phase out the tax on dividend income. Taxing dividends is a form of double taxation that discourages investment. ACU supported this amendment. It was adopted by a vote of 50-50, with the vice-president casting a tie-breaking vote on 15 May 2003.
ACU supported this bill.
This bill was: passed
The vote was: 50-50

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Tax Cuts. HR 2 (Roll Call 179)
2003-05-15
This bill reduced taxes by $350 billion over 11 years, phasing out dividend taxation and accelerating tax rate reductions already in place. While not strong enough, this bill set up passage of a stronger House-Senate conference report with more tax relie
ACU supported this bill.
This bill was: passed
The vote was: 51-49

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Nuclear Weapons Development. S. 1050 (Roll Call 186)
2003-05-20
This amendment would have prohibited research into low-yield nuclear weapons. ACU believes such research is vital to national defense and opposed the amendment. It was defeated 51-43 on 20 May 2003.
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: defeated
The vote was: 51-42

This Senator voted: In Support of ACU

Military Base Closings. HR 1588 (Roll Call 205)
2003-06-04
This amendment would have canceled the next round of military base closings. ACU believes our military must be as “lean and mean” as possible, and that closing some bases can contribute to a strong defense. ACU opposed the amendment. It was defeated by a vote of 42-53 on 4 June 2003.
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: defeated
The vote was: 42-53

This Senator voted: In Support of ACU

Prescription Drug Benefit Means Testing. S. 1 (Roll Call 261)
2003-06-26
This amendment would have barred a cost-saving means test for new benefits in the Medicare prescription drug bill. ACU supported means testing and opposed this amendment. It failed 38-59 on 26 June 2003.
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: defeated
The vote was: 38-59

This Senator voted: Absent

Malpractice Reform. S. 11 (Roll Call 264)
2003-07-09
This bill would have limited expensive medical malpractice lawsuits that are driving up insurance costs and driving doctors out of practice. ACU supported the bill. Although the vote to cut off debate received a majority 49-48 on 9 July 2003, 60 votes are required to end debate under Senate rules. The measure failed.
ACU supported this bill.
This bill was: defeated
The vote was: 49-48

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Taxpayer Support for Abortion. S. 925 (Roll Call 267)
2003-07-09
This amendment would have repealed President Reagan’s “Mexico City policy,” under which the U.S. refuses to fund international family planning organizations that promote abortion. ACU opposed the amendment. It was defeated by a vote of 43-53 on 9 July 20
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: defeated
The vote was: 43-53

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Higher Mileage Requirements. S. 14 (Roll Call 309)
2003-07-29
This amendment would have required automobile manufacturers to increase the mileage of their cars. Higher mileage requirements increase price, and make cars smaller and less safe. ACU opposed the amendment. It failed 32-65 on 29 July 2003.
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: defeated
The vote was: 32-65

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Overtime Rules Reform. HR 2660 (Roll Call 334)
2003-09-10
This amendment would have stopped the U.S. Department of Labor from issuing new, more flexible rules for overtime pay to reflect changing employee desires and workplace conditions. ACU supported the new rules and opposed this amendment. It was adopted 54-45 on 10 September 2003.
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: passed
The vote was: 54-45

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Broadcasting Controls. S. J. Res. 17 (Roll Call 348)
2003-09-16
This amendment expressed disapproval for a Federal Communications Commission rule that would have allowed more freedom in broadcast media ownership. There are more media outlets today than ever before and government should not control media ownership. ACU opposed this resolution. It passed 55-40 on 16 September 2003.
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: passed
The vote was: 55-40

This Senator voted: Absent

Election Law. HR 2989 (Roll Call 409)
2003-10-23
This amendment would increase federal control over local and state elections. ACU opposed this trend toward federalizing local elections. The amendment was adopted 63-31 on 23 October 2003
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: passed
The vote was: 63-31

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Global Warming. S. 139 (Roll Call 420)
2003-10-30
) This measure would have forced the United States into compliance with the Kyoto Treaty that was never ratified by the Senate. It would have required massive, expensive reductions in carbon dioxide. Science does not support Kyoto and its impact on the U.S. economy would be devastating. ACU opposed the measure. It was rejected 43-55 on 30 October 2003.
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: defeated
The vote was: 43-55

This Senator voted: In Opposition of ACU

Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit. HR 1 (Roll Call 459)
2003-11-25
This so-called Medicare “reform” marked the greatest expansion of a federal program in almost 40 years. The $400 billion measure will add trillions to the un-funded liability of the Medicare program, provides only the illusion of patient choice, and will cause millions of seniors to lose their current insurance coverage. The bill did contain a “health savings account” provision favored by ACU, but on balance this did not justify the bill’s overall lack of fiscal responsibility. ACU opposed this bill so strongly that the vote is double-weighted in this rating. It passed 54-44 on 25 November 2003.
ACU opposed this bill.
This bill was: passed
The vote was: 54-44

This Senator voted: Absent

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